Masks
by BrigithBriice
Summary: Because, in the end, everyone wear masks. Some more literally than others. (Slash, post SR)
1. Chapter 1

**Warning: **_This is a slash (Male/Male) fanfiction. If you don't like it, don't read it. Also, I apologize in advance for any typos. Thank you for understanding._

**_Disclaimer: _**_I do not own Alex Rider outside of my dreams ;)'_

* * *

**CHAPTER ONE**

It didn't take a genius to realize that Alex was in a mood and had been for quite some time. Seating comfortably in front of Tom's computer, he had a frown in his face, which was a lot, considering he almost never showed his emotions.

"Make a list" proposed Tom, trying to control the suicidal laugh that was trying to come through his mouth at seeing the weird look on his friend's face "Of why you are so grumpy"

The seventeen year old blond turned to look at his friend with his usual blank face and cold eyes.

"I am not grumpy" he replied, flatly.

Tom rolled his eyes and leaned against his spinning chair.

"You can't even lie properly, mate" he stated, serious "Tell me, what is it?"

Alex stared back at his friend for a moment, but gave up. It was Tom, after all.

"Fine. I am on leave because of my stupid leg" he replied, at last, with frustration "I don't even feel the damn thing anymore, but because of that so called Doctor, I am supposed to stay out of the field for another three weeks. I mean, it's been three months, for God's sake! And I tell you, mate, if I have to spend another weekend at home I am going to die" he paused, frowning "Or quite possibly kill someone"

Tom laughed at his friend's frustration. He knew that Alex had been working for the MI-6 since he was fourteen and that, after Jack had died, he continued his job in a more… official way. At least, that was what he had told him, after coming back after half a year away doing God knows what.

"I thought you liked the normalcy" he said, raising an eyebrow.

"I do" Rider agreed "I really do. It's Ben that is driving me nuts"

That took Tom by surprise. He knew from experience how bad it was to live in an unstable home, but it was really hard to picture Ben, the warm and nice Ben, as someone that could give a teenager – especially Alex! – a hard time.

"Ben is giving you trouble?" the brunette asked, concern showing in his voice.

At that, the spy smirked. He thought it was kind of funny that his friend believed _anyone_ could give him _trouble. _Sure, there were the bullies at school, he would admit that, but he mostly didn't cared about them enough to consider it _trouble._ Besides, it was not like he couldn't take care of that if he wanted, but really, it just wasn't worth it.

"No, he is not giving me trouble" he assured his friend and then sighed, passing his hands through his blonde hair with exasperation "He asked to be put on leave to take care of me and _of course _that Jones granted it. Before, it was easy, because we actually didn't had to spend that much time with each other if you don't count the hours at the bank and when we were wrapped up in something related to it, if you know what I mean"

Tom nodded, getting more and more confuse at the course of the conversation.

"But now, I go to school and go home and he is _always _there" Alex shook his head and, with another heavy sigh, added "And God, really, why does he have to be _shirtless?"_

Harris stared blankly at his friend for a moment. Or two - maybe three - moments.

Alex, who seemed to be less than interested in the World War II documentary they were watching, raised his eyebrows to his unusual silent friend.

"Okay, sorry, I don't follow" Tom gave up after what seemed to be minutes. He frowned "You don't like to spend time with him?"

Rider rolled his eyes at that.

"Of course I do. That is the fucking problem!" he replied, staring at his confused friend. With yet another sigh, he said "Truth be told, Tom, I just really, _really_ need to get laid"

_That_ Harris could understand and, with a little devious smile, he said:

"You could have said that earlier, mate. I am the solution to your problems"

Alex raised one eyebrow and, looking at Tom head-to-toe with an analyzing glance, he shook his head.

"Sorry, Tom, but you're not my type"

Harris fake-punched his friend in the shoulder and, still laughing, reached out to get a white envelop that was on the shelf above their heads.

"Actually, I was referring to this" he corrected, handing the envelope to Rider who quickly opened.

When the blond saw what was inside, he raised his eyebrows, but smiled nevertheless.

* * *

"What do you mean, I can't spend the night in your place?" asked Ben over the phone, desperate "C'mon, Eagle. I need some time away from this house…"

"You need some time away from _him_, you mean" the soldier interrupted, with a clear smile to his voice "Look, Fox, you need to stop being such a baby. You were the one that asked the leave to stay with him"

Ben sighed heavily, passing his hands nervously through his brunette hair – a recent acquired habit.

"I fucking _know"_ he agreed "But I never thought, _fuck_, don't make me say it again. You _know_ how fucked up I am right now" he sighed again "I am certainly going to hell"

On the other side of the line, the man known as Eagle rolled his eyes. _Fucking drama queen,_ he thought.

"Fine, I am going to help you" he stated, but before Fox could start thanking him, added "But you're not staying here"

Ben's face was one of pure suffering.

"Just come to my place, you'll see" Eagle stated and hung up.

Fox blinked in confusion, deciding if he should go and see what his former team mate had in mind. For a moment, he was inclined to ring him again saying he had changed his mind, after all, it was _Eagle_. But then he looked over at the couch, where a black jacket was carelessly thrown and there was no more questioning.

Grabbing his car keys, he rushed out of the house.

* * *

"Hey, Ben" greeted Alex as soon as he walked into the kitchen, about three hours later, where his guardian seemed to be doing an elaborated dinner. _Shirtless,_ the blond thought with despair, _again._

"Hey" returned the brunette, looking shortly at his friend before returning to face the chicken he was stuffing with an exaggerated strength. _Wet hair_, he thought, with an internal sigh, _why, God, just why? _"How was Tom?" he asked instead, without looking at him.

"Fine" replied Rider, leaning uncomfortably at the doorway "But we couldn't finish the paper, if you believe it" he gave a frustrated sigh that seemed legit even for him "I can stay for dinner if you want, since you're having so much trouble… But I'm going to sleep at Tom's tonight so we can finish that damn thing"

Ben stopped stuffing the unfortunate chicken and turned to face the blond with a warm expression. Internally, he was kicking himself for the most variable reasons – mostly for the inappropriate thoughts that were running through his minds – but he only said:

"It's okay, I can do this for lunch tomorrow, don't worry" and, trying not to babble while looking into the deep, brown eyes of the teen, he asked with a voice that he hoped wasn't too pleading "You're coming for lunch, right?"

Alex nodded with a smile. He could feel his heart bumping against his chest in an irrational way. _It is only lunch, moron_, he kicked himself internally, _he is only asking you if you're coming home for lunch._

"Well, so I'm going to get my stuff up in my room" started Rider, slowly getting away from the doorway "See you tomorrow?" he asked, looking at his guardian as if expecting him to stop him or something.

Fox tried to give a warm smile. _He is spending time with his best friend_, he reminded himself dryly_, it's not a big deal._

"Sure, have fun" he agreed and, knowing he couldn't give the boy a hug or anything else because it was not what he would normally do – _what are these thoughts? Ugh!_ – he turned himself to the sink again, trying to focus on the chicken.

Silently, as usual, Alex turned around and went to his bedroom upstairs. There, he opened his closet and took one of his black suits carefully out. He sighed, asking himself for the billionth time if that was a good idea.

Suddenly, he heard a loud noise – and a "_Shit!"_ – coming from the kitchen and decided it was better than the option.

_Fuck,_ he thought while putting angrily his suit in the bag, _I am definitely going to hell._

* * *

Ben sighed when he entered the house – no, mansion. It was not the obvious lack of security or the tactical nightmare that would've been getting out of there in a hurry that made him sigh. That would've been easy. No, the reason he was now in a mood was the fact that he just _couldn't stop thinking about Alex_. And Tom – really, Alex _and_ Tom.

He knew it was stupid and continually told himself that while making his way through the crowded and loud ball room till the bar. He sat himself in the seat and ordered a scotch, cursing himself once again for having agreed to this.

_"__It is a masquerade ball, Fox"_ Eagle had told him, with a grin _"Most people that are going are going exclusively to get a one night stand. Admit it; you need to get some if you don't want to go insane"_

Rolling his eyes, he looked over his shoulders. He had to admit that the place was beautiful and the song – the very, _very_ loud song – wasn't so bad. The masks were a little creepy, fine, but all in all, he supposed it was better to give it a try. _Better than stay home thinking about stupid things…_

Fox finished his scotch – and ordered other, and other, and other… - and finally got to the dance floor.

About an hour and a lot of alcohol later, he just couldn't take it anymore. Slowly getting away from a red haired woman with a white mask and a particularly bad sense of humor, he made his way till a seemingly empty corner of the room. Looking behind his shoulders, he sighed in relief when seeing that the woman wasn't following him.

Leaning against the wall, he close his eyes for a moment. _I am not a good drinker anymore_, he thought, waiting for his world to stop spinning.

"Those margaritas are a killer" Fox heard someone say next to him and, with a startle, opened his eyes to see a fair haired man looking at him with a grin. It was dark where they were standing, but the spy cursed himself – mostly the drinking – for not seeing the man before.

"Yeah" he agreed, trying to pull himself together "And not being used to it makes everything worse, I suppose"

The man, who wore a black, butterfly-shaped mask, nodded. He couldn't see much – or hear very clearly on that matter – where they were, but the spy could swear he saw a smirk on the man's face.

With an internal sigh, Fox decided he was going to try and make a conversation. _Why not?_ Whispered a little voice in his head. _This guy is blond too…_

Trying not to roll his eyes at his internal drunk self, he asked:

"What about you? Tired of dancing?"

The man, still leaned against the wall, shrugged.

"I think I had one too many too" replied the blonde, with honesty "And I am starting to ask myself why the hell I came here for"

Ben smiled at that. He definitely could relate.

"I know the feeling" he agreed, and though he couldn't see it, the man raised an eyebrow "I mean, I know what I am here for, but really, how much small talk does it take to get someone to bed?"

The man on his side laughed through his nose and passed his hand through his blond hair. _Just like him_, Fox thought, but suppressed the thought as soon as it came.

"Well, I would be willing to go to bed with you" said the man, with a smirk that, this time, he could see clearly "But I am guessing you're wanting someone of the other gender, am I right?"

Without a word or even thinking, Ben put his hand on the back of the man's head and pulled him into an urgent kiss, pressing him against the wall. When he recovered from the surprise, the man pulled Fox closer.

Surprisingly enough, it was _good._ Truth be told, Daniels doubted that he was going to be able to really enjoy his time with anyone that night, mostly because his thoughts of Alex _and _Tom were still bugging him. However, that blond man proved to be, so far, very, very, very good at distracting him.

With a strength that Ben didn't thought the man had, he inverted positions and pressed the spy against the wall, kissing and sucking the brunettes neck with amazing skill that made him shiver in pleasure, his breath getting heavier.

The man suddenly stopped and Fox was about to complain, but when he opened his eyes he saw a devious smile on the guy that reminded him painfully of Alex. The man grabbed his hand and, with a wink, started to drag him through the room. Somehow, before he could even take on his surroundings, the music turned lower and he found himself in a beautiful, big room.

Somewhere in his mind, he realized that the men had dragged him there, somehow passing through the guard that was standing in front of the door. The alcohol was slowing his mind, he could see it.

"Did you knew the guard?" he asked, playfully, when the man locked the door and turned to look at him. In the better lighted room, Ben was able to see a lot better the blond and almost shook his head in disbelief. His eyes were just like Alex's.

He stared at his eyes for a moment – he didn't saw the man raise an eyebrow – before smiling and pulling the blond to another kiss.

"You're good" Ben was able to whisper while the guy, between kisses, started to undress him.

The blond paused when he took off Fox's shirt, staring at the man's shirtless body. With a visible gulp, the man looked up to the spy and gave a step back with what seemed to be a mortified face.

Ben frowned, confuse. He knew he had a small bullet scar in his shoulder* from the Snakehead operation, but it certainly wasn't _that _bad, was it? He reminded of Alex, whose upper body was all covered with all kinds of scars.

"What…" he started to ask, but the blond raised a hand and, after closing his eyes for a moment, he looked up again.

With a heavy sigh, he took off his black mask.

It was Alex.

* * *

* I have absolutely no clue where Fox was shot during Snakehead, so I'm going for the shoulder because it's what suits my story. The wonders of fanfiction 'hehe

_Now, properly, hello!_

_First of all, I don't know if anyone is going to read this because the Ben/Alex pairing isn't really a favorite around here, but it's okay. I still love them *o*_

_This is going to be a two shot and I am dying to know what you guys are thinking so far, so feel free to review!_

_Also, I need to say something about the cover. I know it's not Alex Pettyfer - and I do love him as Alex - but after I watched "queer as folk" I just couldn't stop seeing Brian (Gale Harold) as Ben and Justin (Randy Harrison) as Alex. They're so perfect together that it hurts. And the show is amazing too, if anyone is interested._

_Anyway._

_Hope you like it._

_Kisses, Bri._


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N:** Okay, so, first of all, sorry for the delay. It's just that I've read this chapter about a thousand times and, quite frankly, I don't really know if that's what I wanted to do. Oh, well, I will probably write more stories and - hopefully - get better at it.

Anyway, I hope this is at least a little enjoyable. Kisses to everyone who reviewed and favorited and followed in the last chapter - You guys are the light of my life, you know?

Enjoy!

* * *

"Hey, Ben" Alex greeted with a twitch that could never be described as a smile.

Fox was feeling like he had been punched. He stared at the teen with wide eyes for a moment, before taking off his own mask and seating in the bed, like he couldn't stand anymore.

"That's…" the brunette tried "I…" and tried again "You…" and again "Oh, my god" and finally gave up, resting his head in his hands.

He couldn't tell what exactly he was feeling. He was completely disorientated. A part of him was feeling happy – really happy – but the majority was just completely scared. _There,_ the little voice whispered, _wasn't that what you've been dreaming about for the past three months?_ Unknown to him, the blond was having the exact same thoughts.

"I think…" Alex started slowly, his heart racing "We should probably go home"

Ben raised his head, blushing furiously. Any other time, Rider would've laughed.

"Yeah, hum, did you come with your car?" the brunette asked, doing his best not to stutter. Alex, who seemed to have suddenly found something very interesting in his shoes, shook his head in denial "So we better grab a cab"

Fox started to get up and go to the door, to which Rider was now trying to merge with - apparently.

"You should… Hum…" Alex looked down again, blushing too "Your shirt" and then, with what seemed to be pain in his voice, added "_Please"_

Astonished, Ben grabbed his white shirt from the floor as quickly as he could and put it on, turning around to face the blond, who was, to his great surprise, facing the wooden door or, rather, with his face _on_ the wooden door, like if he was counting in a game of hide and seek.

Still with a little alcohol blurring his thoughts, Fox couldn't help a smile. He was _so beautiful_! He felt an irrational impulse of wrapping his arms around the teen's waist. However, as soon as thought stroke him, he shook his head. _Enough,_ he thought to himself, _you've made enough damage already._

"Hum, we can go" Fox said with a whisper that, unknown to him, made the boy feel a shiver going down his spine.

Without a word, Alex opened the door and, not even looking around, they both made their way out.

* * *

After a very silent and awkward cab drive, they found themselves seating on the living room's couch, as far as possible from each other, both thinking of something so say – or stutter, at least.

"I'm sorry" was Alex who broke the silence, looking serious at Ben's face "I lied to you when I said I was going to be with Tom and went to that stupid masquerade party"

Fox blinked.

"I… Why?" he asked, mostly because he still couldn't think of anything else to say.

Rider's cheeks got even more red and he looked away. His heart, once again, seemed to be trying to escape from his chest. _Honestly,_ he thought to himself, _handle a_ _murderous maniac? Fine! Maintain calm with Ben? No fucking way._

"I told Tom I was going nuts and needed to get laid" he explained so fast it was amazing how Fox could understand it "He gave me the invitation"

"Nuts?" Daniels repeated, numbly, staring at the teen. _I can't even formulate a question, for fucks sake!_ He kicked himself internally.

The blond bit his lip. _Oh, God. _

"I'm…" he paused "_Fuck… _Look, these past few months… It's been complicated" he concluded, with a heavy sigh "You're fucking driving me insane!"

That took Ben by surprise. He blinked once or twice – _so cute!_, thought Alex, to his own despair – before he finally snapped out of it and practically exploded.

"What do you mean _I_ am driving you insane?" he asked, his eyes betraying his irritation "_You're_ the one coming out of the bathroom wrapped up in a towel and with your hair wet. _You're _the one with this… this _look_ on your face. _You're _the one that seems to have been _made_ with the sole purpose of getting _me_ fucking insane! _Honestly_, _Alex_"

The teen was breathing quickly, his mind a complete blank – the only thing he was aware of was Ben, seating in front of him with a stormy expression on his face.

"Hang on, Fox" he said slowly, with something that Ben couldn't identify shining in his eyes "You're seriously complaining about me doing everything I have ever done when _you're _the one who wanders around _half fucking naked_ in the house? How do you think I recognize you before? I have been seeing, _fucking dreaming, _about _this_" Alex gestured Ben's body with his hands "for the _fucking past three months!"_

They both stared at each other, slowly realizing what had been said. Rider was the first to come around, widening his deep brown eyes in fear.

"Hum, I, wait, I…" he sighed, passing his hands through his hair and biting down his lip "Oh, _fuck,_ Ben, I'm sorry, but I can't do this anymore… I wear too many masks already and I just can't keep pretending with you… I… I am going to hell"

Ben gulped visibly, passing his hand on the boy's face tenderly.

"I am sorry too" he said, slowly, while Alex grabbed his hand and looked at him with pleading in his eyes "I can't go on pretending that you're just my friend and work partner, Al. You're just…" Daniels closed his eyes and, taking a deep breath, concluded "_You're just so much more to me"_

Alex smiled slowly and, like a predator, started to get closer to Ben, stopping only when their mouths were almost touching.

"Is this okay?" he asked, looking at Ben's mouth suggestively.

Daniels smiled, brushing his mouth against Alex and grabbing the back of the teen's head possessively.

"Is _this_ okay?" he questioned "I won't be able to stop once we start, Al"

Alex smirked with amusement.

"I don't want you to" he replied and, before Ben could do anything – think of anything – they were kissing, hugging, pulling closer, passing hands, sucking, biting, licking, growling, scratching and… _Oh, fuck._

The couch became just too little and suddenly they were in the floor and then in the kitchen, the table, the countertop, the floor again.

None of them was actually _thinking_, they only knew that, somehow, they _worked._ There was no need for words. They _understood_ each other.

And it wasn't wrong. It was magical – it was right.

* * *

And this is all folks! :D'

I know this was sadly short and not really good, but for the first slashy thing I have ever written, I think it's ok - I mean, there isn't really a plot, but there's also not so much unnecessary porn, so... yeah. As I said, hopefully I'll get better.

Anyway, I am open to suggestions and reviews - really, I would love to know what you think of this little story.

Thanks everyone to the support,

Kisses,

Bri.


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